Latest snow storm pushes season past snowfall record to 53.4 inches

PEORIA — The National Weather Service confirmed Sunday what many in central Illinois suspected: We are living in the snowiest winter on record.

The 3.2 inches of snow dumped on Peoria in the latest storm brought the accumulation total to 53.4 inches, besting the 52.5 inches that fell in 2010-11.

“Any additional snow that we get the rest of this month will add to this record,” said Chris Geelhart, meteorologist with the National Weather Service office in Lincoln.

That total accounts for snow that falls October through April. The three-month meteorological winter ended with the month of February and will go down as the second in total snowfall.

While the snow totals have been unprecedented, it’s the temperatures, Geelhart said, not the precipitation, that has been out of the ordinary.

The total precipitation collected during the meteorological winter was 6.36 inches, only about 1/3 of an inch more than normal, but just over 6 inches of precipitation translated to 49.6 inches of snow.

With the average temperature a chilly 23.2 degrees, the winter goes down as the eighth coldest on record.

Sunday night, the expected low was 5 degrees below zero, which would set yet another record in the winter that will be remembered for its polar vortex that contributed to 20 days that reached or dipped below zero, compared to an average of about seven.

As far as when the long-awaited spring may arrive, Geelhart said relief is on the horizon.

With cold temperatures expected early in the week, temperatures could be back into the 30s by Thursday, and the area could see rainfall as early as Saturday, though snow also is possible.

By mid-March, Geelhart said, Peoria could start to see near-normal temperatures.

Laura Nightengale can be reached at 686-3181 or lnightengale@pjstar.com. Follow her on Twitter @lauranight.